Contributed by: Vanja Mikulic and Irena Milatovic, Montenegro National VAW Monitors

SOS Hotline for Women and Children Victims of Violence Niksic organised a Mini-school on Gender Equality for young Roma women in Montenegro on 22-24 September 2006. The school was organised with the aim to strengthen, link and incite Roma women and activists to start joint initiatives, which will contribute to the improvement of Roma women in both family and society. The three-day program was regularly attended by 10 girls and women activists from the Centre for Roma Initiatives – Niksic, Roma Association “Women’s heart” – Podgorica and non-formal women's groups from Berane.

Participants were introduced to women and children’s rights, the concept of sex and gender, negative stereotypes on the role of women and men in family and society, violence against women, and women’s health. They were also introduced to domination techniques, how to recognise and confront them, and what messages body language sends, as well. They also practised teamwork and had lectures on networking and coalitions.

At the end of the school, participants invented a joint initiative with the aim to contribute to solving the problem of early marriages of Roma girls in Montenegro and their dropout rates from school.

Lecturers for the seminar were activists of SOS Hotline Niksic Mara Tadic and Nada Koprivica, RIVER SEE volunteer from Macedonia Ivona Krstevska / psychologist, and Mirjana Popovic, sociologist at the Faculty of Phylosophy in Niksic. The seminar was organised within the project “Program of strengthening of Roma women and activists from Niksic, Podgorica and Berane," which is financially supported by UNICEF.

Source: SOS Hotline for Women and Children Victims of Violence Niksic